Implied Odds
by LadyCameron
Summary: A slight change in the Courrier's journey where she gets to Benny by joining forces with a new Independent Faction that I made up for your entertainment. The Valkyries are a tribe of women, mainly, with all sorts of interesting ties in the other factions of the game, mostly the Chairmen. With their help, Six might get the Vendetta she craves and a brand new turn of event.
1. Chapter 1

Implied Odds

It was like having a beehive stuck in her skull, buzzing, scratching and humming so low nothing she could do would change the lack of comfort she was in. Six woke up like this sometimes, in the middle of the night, with the feeling that the scar she now bore on her face was reopening. The weight of the injury truly was the last thing she needed after having to spend a night in an old, windy shack in the cold nights of the Mojave.

"I'm going to fucking kill him," she sighed, putting both her hands over her face. "And burn his ridiculous checkered vest."

Her nightly mumbling grasped the attention of the man who had been accompanying her since Novac, Boone, who simply turned slightly on the chair he was on to glance at her. He observed her silently at first, his sniper still firmly held in hand since he was the one keeping guard so Six could catch some shut eye.

"You said you'd sleep," he simply said as he turned to gaze back at the Mojave. "The faster you're rested, the faster I too can get some sleep,"

Six cracked her fingers open to glare at the man, the irritation from her injury making it nearly impossible to rest.

"Don't give me that look," Boone said after he took another glance at her. "Tomorrow we're reaching Freeside, you can stop by the Old Fort to see your friend Arcade and the followers. Maybe they've got something there that'll dull the pain."

With a deep sigh, the woman closed her eyes again, letting her hands slid off her face and lay on her side.

"Fine," she said. "I'll try harder."

"Well, that was the best I could do for the pain," Arcade suppressed a sigh as he gave Six a glass of purified water. " The headaches aren't likely to disappear, you'll just need to stay hydrated and avoid anything to trigger your migraines like, walking under the sun for entire days. Without much rest and food and water," he said that, giving her a disapproving look. "I say that because I know you've been going around chasing caps at every corner of the map in a very short amount of time. I'm no doctor but as any human with minimal intelligence would know, this was not the best way to heal your still very recent wound."

"Oh well, I needed to work," Six said irritably before chugging down the glass of water. "I need to get on that Strip and into the Tops Casino to get both a satisfying vendetta and my stolen shipment. Every minute I spend slacking off is a minute I lose laughing at his stupid corpse at my feet."

Arcarde blinked.

"I'm glad to see your travels have turned you away from the barbaric ways of the Wasteland." he scoffed.

"Come on, Arcade, this guy's a prick." Six added. "He's the guy who literally shot the messenger."

Shrugging off her comment, Arcade turned away from her to store what little medical supplies he had taken out to check on her, putting it away under an empty bed in the tent they were both standing in. As he did so, a few heads turned to look at the large wooden door that had announced with a loud noise, the arrival of a new person.

Craning her neck out of the tent, Six smiled at the man that had entered, Boone, who was coming back from a little supply run in Freeside. As stoic as ever, the man made his way towards her, his glasses sending a blinding flash of light right in her direction.

"Hey, you," she threw a wink at him, "Looking swell with all that equipment, got anything for me?"

"You didn't give me any caps so, no." he simply answered, dropping the bag of new supplies at his feet. "Hey Arcade, did you fix her?"

"There's nothing more to fix," Arcade said, greeting the man with a casual handshake. "She needs rest and water and rest again. I heard you two went out and about, turning over every rock in the Mojave for caps to get inside The Strip?"

"We did," Six sighed, tired of being reprimanded. "We did and now we've got the cashflow to get in there, get my stolen shipment, kick Benny _in the face_ and walk out."

"About that," Boone said, moving next to her to sit beside her on the bed. "This might be a little harder than your well thought plan. Oh, by the way, I got you this."

After bending over for a quick look inside the bag of supplies he had just brought, Boone got out two kebabs of Bramhin meat and gave them to her.

"Awe, you said you hadn't brought me anything," Six said as she took the food, endearment in her tone. "You lied to me so it would be a better surprise, you're precious."

Boone shrugged off the comment, a slight blush now appearing right under the line of his glasses.

"Yeah, you need to eat, Arcade just said so," he said briskly. "So as I was saying, things might get a little trickier than you anticipated. Word on the street is Benny knows you're back from the grave. Him and his goons might be ready for you when you get there so we better keep a low profile."

"Which you have not done splendidly so far, I might add." Arcade noted.

"Ah fuck, you're joking, right?" Six said with her mouth full, her playfulness now giving place to utter disappointment. "I'm good and Boone's good but we can't just tackle a gun fight in the middle of the Strip, that's just too much noise. How do I get to him now?"

They all fell silent for a instant except for Six that was now chewing her meat angrily and loudly.

"There is a person who can probably get to him but I doubt she'd help if she knows you want to kill him." Arcade said after a while. "She use to run with the Chairmen a long time ago and she's known to still be able to walk in and out of the Tops at will. She often deals with Benny and has no trouble doing so."

"Who is she?" Boone said with interest.

"She leads a tribe of pacific settlers south from here, the followers deals with them a lot and we are on great terms. People call them the Valkyries since the tribe contains more capable women than men but I don't think that they call themselves that, they like to keep a low profile. The leader's name is Rhexa, I can probably introduce you but like I said earlier, I don't think she'll help take him out so you'll need to keep that info to yourself."

" _Why?_ " asked Six, seemingly unable to picture someone who wouldn't want Benny dead.

"Well, these are rumors…" Arcade said with and unsure shrug. "But apparently, they're still married."

"What the fuck..." was all that Boone muttered as Six stared up at Arcade, confusion now shaping her face as a piece of Brahmin meat slowly rolled out of her mouth.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

note: From now on, the updates for the fic will be done every Tuesday so stay tuned for more :) I felt like writing a bit more today so I will be posting out of my regular schedule to hand over some fluff-ish. Have fun reading :)

"This can't be a good idea," Boone said, his arms crossed over his chest as he slowly shook his head. "The minute that Lady gets that you are behind any harm that comes to Benny, you risk having another tribe keeping their teeth sharp for you."

"I'm not saying this is the perfect way to deal with this," Arcade added, somewhat agreeing with Boone on that one. "But at the very least, you can always use the information she can give to get closer to him. Like I said, you would need to be subtle."

Six listened to them both in silence, contemplating the possibilities ahead of her as well as the challenges they presented. From what she could tell, Arcade only knew the woman had previous ties with the Chairmen's leader and couldn't tell more about how well they still got along. Maybe they only cared for a professional relationship, maybe she hated the prick but still needed some sort of protection, who knew, right? It may not have been the straightest route to Benny but it was surely worth getting looked into.

"I'm going to go meet her," Six said with a brisk nod. "Arcade, you said you didn't really know the nature of her relationship with Benny, right? I'm thinking, maybe she hates him too, no? Like, she is not running with the Chairmen anymore, there's got to be a reason for that."

"It's true that I don't know much more about them, no," Arcade shrugged. "But sure, I'll set up the meeting. Come back tomorrow, I should be able to send for them until then."

"Thanks, Arcade," Six sighed, getting up from her seat and giving the man a pat on the shoulder, a gesture Arcade responded to with a slight frown. "I can't wait to see what kind of woman is dumb enough to have married that prick."

* * *

"I'm pretty sure I can hit this signpost from here," a fairly drunk Boone said as he struggled slightly to keep his balance, his sniper held up and pointed at the horizon.

Six, who on the other hand was sitting down comfortably on a pile of rocks, let out a loud yawn, the whiskey they had cracked open earlier slowly starting to affect her. Getting drunk under one of the broken overpasses outside of Freeside might not have been the best idea to survive a night in the Mojave but the two companions were celebrating in some sort. They were almost there, 2000 caps for one and a passport for the other, one more day and another part of the plan would be dealt with.

"My mom always said never to drink and shoot a heavy tactical weapon in the middle of the night." Six said with a lazy giggle. "Come on and sit by the fire with me, there's some whiskey left that I can't be trusted with."

"I probably should stop drinking," Boone sighed, dropping his weapon down before landing indelicately on the ground beside Six. "I need to stay sharp, keep my mind clear for the day I'll send a bullet on a one-way trip through Ceasar's ugly skull…"

"That's what I love about you, man," Six laughed softly. "No one puts killing into such a poetic light like you do. _Send a bullet on a one-way trip_...I wish I had a good one like that for Benny. Care to find me one?"

She could tell that despite his natural stern demeanour, a smile was tugging upwards the lips of the ex NCR soldier. He looked up, pensive, trying to find a one-liner that could fit with the courier's case.

"Alright, so, the last thing he said to you, something about the game being rigged from the start, yeah?" he asked her, unable to hide the grin on his face. "How about, like, _Checkmate_ in reference to his checkered vest and the fact that he now, is in the losing position?"

Six remained silent as she looked at Boone before grimacing and shaking her head.

"I've already lost it, right?" Boone said, letting out a short sigh.

"Nah, you're just the kind of artist who needs to have their own anger and rage fuel their art." she laughed, grabbing the bottle at her feet and swinging it over for him to take. "It's understandable, I'll just need to channel my inner you."

His smile grew wider, giving Six a mushy feeling on the inside, surely helped by the alcohol but nonetheless warm. She rarely saw him like this, relaxed and willing to join her on the endless joke train she liked to ride. Most of the time he'd merely tolerate her constant rambling but from time to time, they sat down around a fire just like the one they had tonight, and they would drink an entire bottle of whiskey just to forget how fucked up everything really was.

It wasn't perfect, nothing in the fucking Wasteland was anyway, but in these moments they had each other to remind themselves that it was worth it, from time to time, to sit with another human being and just...Trust for a second.

"Eh, you're alright, kid," she said through a yawn, laying down to take a look at the stars in the sky. "We take care of my Benny tomorrow and you can bet I'll be right by your side the day we take down that misogynist psycho."


	3. Chapter 3

Standing right outside the northern door leading to Freeside, Six was minding her own business, checking out the shape of the horizon as she waited for her two companions to show up. The warmth was bearable and the life outside of the inner wall made it feel almost safe as if merchants and caravans going about with their business meant that scavengers had not ruined anyone's day so far.

Six was tracing random patterns in the sand, her mind bored and absent, much so that she didn't even hear both Arcade and Boone walk towards her.

"Looking for gold?" Arcade mocked, making the woman jump out of her contemplating state.

"Hey, you and your snarky remark are late, I've been here for a long time, I could've gotten shot you know?" she feigned offense, leaning over to greet Boone with a friendly punch on the shoulder.

Boone frowned.

"I'm ready to head out," the man said, rolling back his shoulder. He had somehow, really felt that punch. "How far, Arcade? Are they expecting us?"

Arcade shrugged, joining Six' side and putting both hands on his hips, gazing away at the distance.

"Not so much, we should be there in an hour or so," he turned back to look at Boone. "And no, they are not expecting us, but as a Follower myself, I know we are on good terms. You two just play nice and everything should be settled quickly."

"You said an hour, Arcade," Boone said between his teeth, sweat dripping from beneath his beret. "We've been walking for a lot more than that, plus we had to fend off some fiends."

Arcade rolled his eyes as he leaned onto the crippled wall of the building they had taken cover behind. In the middle of a ghost town, fiends had come out of nowhere, sending a few bullets on the group's way before being taken down. The fight had ended as fast as it had started but on a journey that was supposed to be eventless, irritation had lodged itself within the group.

"They moved, apparently, they do that from time to time," Arcade breathed out, taking a map out of his vest and checking it out. "They have a pattern and they allowed us to keep track of them."

Frustrated, Boone took a few steps forwards, aiming to snatch the map from Arcade's hands but was a tad too slow for Arcade had swiftly moved away, stashing the map away.

"No, my friend," Arcade scoffed. "This is not for your eyes to see. The Vals trusted us with this, I can't let anyone else see this. I know where they should be now and we are certain to be there before they head off again."

"Fine," Six sighed deeply, moving between to two men to push them forward. "Let's just get there, Benny has had me walking into way too much sand to dawdle any further."

The night was settling on the Mojave when the group finally came upon the settlement they had been after for almost a whole day. Down a hill and between two buildings filled with sand, a cozy-looking community had planted their roots and seemed to prepare for the night. As expected, mostly women were touring the parameters, armed to the teeth and with a ruthlessness about them that made the group choose to approach carefully with holstered weapons.

"Let me go first and look friendly," Arcade whispered as they started going down the hill, their feet sinking into the sand, almost making them glide down.

"Ah, great, more sand in my shoes," Six sighed.

As the group got closer, they noticed a few heads turn in their direction, patrolling guards halting momentarily to spot them and a silent stir took place in the middle of the settlement.

"There are a few men here," Boone noted, his piercing eyes spotting even the furthest guard.

"They are not exclusively women," Arcade clarified, keeping his voice low since they were getting closer. "There is one man here who is particularly impressive but, not is the sexy way. You'll know when you- "

The flap of a tent flew up and out of the darkness of it, emerged a man, at first normal, but as he unrolled himself to his full length, Six let out a surprised whistle.

"Yeah," Arcade simply said. "You'll know when you see him…"

The ridiculously tall man towered above the people around him, making them all look like children. Not only was he tall, but his shape was also incredibly impressive as if all made of muscles and strength.

"That's the kind of guy who clearly eats the heart of his enemies, I tell ya." Six let out a nervous chuckle, now noticing that the man had laid eyes on them.

At first, the expression in the man's eyes transpired nothing but raw hostility but quickly switched back to neutral when he spotted a member of the Followers of the Apocalypse among the group. With a few words to the people around him, the man started making his way towards the newcomers, people now spreading away from the center of the settlement.

"No one told me the Followers were paying us a visit," the man's voice came as a low rumble. "They rarely surprise us."

"Do you think that's Benny's wife?" Six whispered a chuckle to Boone's ear.

Boone frowned, stepping slightly away from her and her badly timed jest.

"We are not here for business today, it's a more personal matter and we are hoping to get Rhexa to help us with that," Arcade said, taking a few steps closer to the man.

The man scoffed, crossing his two muscled arms over his as-muscled chest. Six frowned lightly, noticing that the man had something odd about himself. Blonde hair, cut short as if in the military and eyes shining with an odd colour. Even his skin seemed out of place, like a complexion she had never seen before and oddly white for someone living out in the Mojave.

"Tell me how she can help you and I'll take this to her," the man said. "Then she will decide if this is worth her time or not."

Arcade raised his eyebrows, turning to look at both Boone and Six, all knowing they could not truly say the real reason for their presence here on that night. They all looked at each other for a moment, then a spark appeared in Six's eyes and as the guys mouthed "no" to her, she opened her mouth.

"It's about a chip, something that has some great value and that guy, Benny, has taken it from me."

At the name drop, the tall man's features' hardened and he quickly glanced over his shoulder. As he was about to shove the group back into the hill they had just come down from, the flap of yet another tent flew up and a woman came out of it, a dead serious look on her face.

"A chip?" the woman spoke clearly, her voice piercing through Six' s throat.

"That's her," Arcade whispered. "That's Rhexa."

Six swallowed back the jest she was aiming to throw at the women to ease off the tension, figuring that making jokes about her tall guard right there would set matters on fire rather than doing any good. Walking towards them confidently, the woman known as Rhexa truly came as a surprise. Nothing Six could have pictured as the wife of that well-suited thug she had the displeasure of coming across.

With Olive skin, long black hair held in a ponytail and a well-muscled body, the woman's traits were hard and unforgiving, the same face any women surviving in the Mojave would bear. Despite her piercing eyes and leather armor, she had clearly been beautiful at some point but the long slash of a scar across her face, from the corner of her right eyebrow to the left corner of her mouth, spoiled what would have been a flawless woman.

"You said Benny and Chip in the same sentence," She said, coming up to Six and staring down at her. "You've come here because you know who I am and I'm guessing you are hoping to get my help making him pay, yes?"

The group exchanged an awkward look before turning back to face Rhexa.

"I don't mean no harm," Six lied, trying to sound casual. "I just want my chip back, that's all."

"That fucking thing," Rhexa said almost to herself, her eyes still locked on Six. "If Benny has it, there is no way he is letting that go without dying. I'm not sure how you think I can help. I'm not going to help you kill him."

"Look, I just really want that back, alright? I'm ready to do pretty much anything just to - " Six started to argue but was cut rapidly.

"You are not the only one who wants that chip and to my knowledge, you must not really understand what that thing can do if you are willing to throw that word around like it's nothing," Rhexa said, narrowing her eyes. "You want revenge because he stole it from you."

Six scoffed angrily, her emotions now a tad too raw to ignore. Boone reached out to keep her from moving forward but she pushed his arm back.

"That prick didn't just steal from me," she spat, the anger from what happened to her now resurging like lava out of a volcano. "He fucking shot me in the head - twice! I was just a stupid courier trying to do my fucking job and that horrible man decided that I needed to be killed and left me out in an unmarked grave near some village!"

"Six…" Arcade warned her.

"I mean, you live miles away from the strip and rumor has it, you two aren't together anymore. I'm guessing that it was because he is an asshole and like, everyone I met hates him."

Rhexa had now taken a few steps back, her arms crossed as she looked down on the women with both her eyebrows up.

"You - " Six scoffed when she saw the unperturbed expression on the woman's face. "You don't even seem to care if people hate him so why protect him?"

"I'm used of having people hating him and wanting him dead, trust me, you're not the first person to come to me to get to him," Rhexa let out a somewhat amused chuckle. "I have a lot of issues with him myself. You are not entirely wrong, I did leave the Tops because things were terrible with my husband. Still, I won't let anyone harm him, not if I can help it."

"But why?" Six was incredulous. "He's nothing more than a thug and clearly he was a shit husband if you had to leave."

"Because I don't want my son to lose his dad," Rhexa said flat-out, glancing around before slowly turning on her heels. "Look, I won't help you kill him but, maybe you and I can be beneficial for each other. If you say Benny has the chip in his hands right now, it means that the odds have changed in the game and for my sake, I need to look into that matter. We can talk about it tomorrow. I'll allow your group to settle here tonight and we can go over this again. For now, I need to think."

Actions 


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